Maria Luisa of Lucca

Maria Luisa of Lucca (6 July 1782-13 March 1824) was Queen consort of Etruria from 21 March 1801 to 27 May 1803 and Duchess of Lucca from 9 June 1815 to 13 March 1824, preceding Charles I.

Biography
Infanta Maria Luisa was born in Segovia, Spain in 1782, the daughter of King Carlos IV of Spain and Maria Luisa of Parma. In 1795, she married her first cousin, Louis, the hereditary prince of Parma. She spent her early years at the Spanish court, where her son, the future Duke Charles II of Parma, was born. In 1801, the Third Treaty of San Ildefonso made her husband King of Etruria, making her Queen consort. After her husband's death in 1803, she served as regent for their son Charles, and France annexed Etruria in 1807, forcing Maria Luisa and Charles to go into exile in Spain. She became the only member of the Spanish royal family to directly oppose Napoleon I, leading to her being separated for her son and imprisoned at a convent in Rome. She regained her freedom in 1814 at the fall of Napoleon, and she continued to live in Rome. The Congress of Vienna granted her the Duchy of Lucca in 1815, and, as consolation for her not receiving Tuscany, she was allowed to retain the honors of a queen. She did not take the government of Lucca until December 1817, as she was initially reluctant to accept this demotion. She disregarded the constitution of Lucca established at the Congress, and she died of cancer at her palace in Rome in 1824, leading to her son Charles succeeding her.